The burden of non-communicable diseases is rising globally. This trend seems to be faster in developing countries of the Middle East. In this study, we presented the latest prevalence rates of a number of important non-communicable diseases and their risk factors in the Iranian population.

We have recently determined the optimal cut-off of the homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance for the diagnosis of insulin resistance (IR) and metabolic syndrome (MetS) in non-diabetic residents of Tehran, the capital of Iran. The aim of the present study is to establish the optimal cut-off at the national level in the Iranian population with and without diabetes. Data of the third National Surveillance of Risk Factors of Non-Communicable Diseases, available for 3,071 adult Iranian individuals aging 25-64 years were analyzed. MetS was defined according to the Adult Treatment Panel III (ATPIII) and International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria. HOMA-IR cut-offs from the 50th to the 95th percentile were calculated and sensitivity, specificity, and positive likelihood ratio for MetS diagnosis were determined. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves of HOMA-IR for MetS diagnosis were depicted, and the optimal cut-offs were determined by two different methods: Youden index, and the shortest distance from the top left corner of the curve. The area under the curve (AUC) (95%CI) was 0.650 (0.631-0.670) for IDF-defined MetS and 0.683 (0.664-0.703) with the ATPIII definition. The optimal HOMA-IR cut-off for the diagnosis of IDF- and ATPIII-defined MetS in non-diabetic individuals was 1.775 (sensitivity: 57.3%, specificity: 65.3%, with ATPIII; sensitivity: 55.9%, specificity: 64.7%, with IDF). The optimal cut-offs in diabetic individuals were 3.875 (sensitivity: 49.7%, specificity: 69.6%) and 4.325 (sensitivity: 45.4%, specificity: 69.0%) for ATPIII- and IDF-defined MetS, respectively. We determined the optimal HOMA-IR cut-off points for the diagnosis of MetS in the Iranian population with and without diabetes.

Chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) is one of the most common types of intracranial hemorrhage, especially in the elderly, with a significant recurrence rate ranging from 9.2 to 26.5%. The role of postoperative patient posture in the recurrence of CSDH has not been studied sufficiently. A total of 84 consecutive patients with unilateral traumatic CSDH without known risk factors of CSDH recurrence were prospectively enrolled in this study. All patients underwent burr-hole surgery with closed system drainage and were then allocated randomly to either of two groups: Group A (n = 42) patients were kept in a supine position for 3 days after the operation, whereas Group B (n = 42) patients assumed a sitting position in bed, with the head of the bed elevated to 30 to 40 degrees, for the same duration as Group A. After 3 days, there was no restriction in patients' activities in both groups. All patients were followed-up for at least 3 months after surgery. The groups were not significantly different in age, sex, presence of brain atrophy or hydrocephalus, preoperative hematoma width, and postsurgery subdural space width. The recurrence rate in Groups A and B were 2.3 and 19.0% (necessitating repeat surgery in one patient), respectively (P = 0.02). Other complications in Groups A and B, respectively, were atelectasis (10 versus seven; P = 0.41), pneumonia (five versus four; P = 0.72), decubitus ulcer (three versus two; P = 0.64), and deep vein thrombosis (zero versus one; P = 0.31). Assuming an upright posture soon after burr-hole surgery was associated with a significantly increased incidence of CSDH recurrence but not with a significant change in other position-related postsurgical complications. According to this result, it is not recommended that elderly patients assume an upright posture soon after burr-hole surgery to prevent postoperative atelectasis and dementia, as these might significantly increase the risk of CSDH recurrence.

Background Previous studies report on smoking in Iran but recent national data on tobacco use (including cigarette, water-pipe and pipe) have not been reported. Methods In 2007, 5287 Iranians aged 15–64 years were sampled from all provinces as part of a national cross-sectional survey of non-communicable disease (NCD) risk factors. Data were collected using the standardised stepwise protocol for NCD risk factor surveillance of the World Health Organization. Use of tobacco products was calculated as the sum of smoking cigarettes/cigars (smoking currently or daily any amount of factory/hand-made cigarettes or cigars), pipes (daily) and water pipes (daily). Results Total current and daily tobacco use was 14.8% (burden 7.3 million) and 13.7% (burden 6.7 million) when extrapolated to the Iranian population aged 15–64. The prevalence of current and daily cigarette smoking was 12.5% (6.1 million; 23.4% males and 1.4% females) and 11.3% (5.6 million; 21.4 males and 1.4 females); former smokers comprised 1.7 million or 3.4% of the Iranian population (6.2% males and 0.6% females; mean cessation age 34.1). The mean age of starting to smoke was 20.5 years (24.2 males and 20.4 females). The prevalence of water-pipe smoking was 2.7% (burden 1.3 million; 3.5% males and 1.9% females). Water-pipe smokers used the water-pipe on average 3.5 times a day (2.8 males and 4.5 females). Conclusion The prevalence of tobacco use has not escalated over the past two decades. Nonetheless, the burden is high and therefore warrants preventive public health policies.

NK cell activation has been shown to be metabolically regulated in vitro; however, the role of metabolism during in vivo NK cell responses to infection is unknown. We examined the role of glycolysis in NK cell function during murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) infection and the ability of IL-15 to prime NK cells during CMV infection. The glucose metabolism inhibitor 2-deoxy-ᴅ-glucose (2DG) impaired both mouse and human NK cell cytotoxicity following priming in vitro. Similarly, MCMV-infected mice treated with 2DG had impaired clearance of NK-specific targets in vivo, which was associated with higher viral burden and susceptibility to infection on the C57BL/6 background. IL-15 priming is known to alter NK cell metabolism and metabolic requirements for activation. Treatment with the IL-15 superagonist ALT-803 rescued mice from otherwise lethal infection in an NK-dependent manner. Consistent with this, treatment of a patient with ALT-803 for recurrent CMV reactivation after hematopoietic cell transplant was associated with clearance of viremia. These studies demonstrate that NK cell–mediated control of viral infection requires glucose metabolism and that IL-15 treatment in vivo can reduce this requirement and may be effective as an antiviral therapy.